Saarek
History Origin Ever since Saarek was a small child, he possessed the ability to telepathically commune with the dead. As an adult, he was chosen to serve in the second iteration of the Green Lantern Corps. Saarek's ability brought him into contact with another GL named Morro the caretaker of the Green Lantern Crypt on Oa. When an alien threat began slaughtering family members of various Green Lantern rookies, Saarek's expertise was called upon to identify the victims and analyze the situation. After literally bathing in the severed eyeballs of dozens of victims, Saarek determined that the beings responsible were a sub-group of the Sinestro Corps known as the Quintet. Saarek was first introduced during a general gathering on Oa many years before Parallax destroyed the Corps. Saarek and Hal Jordan were among the many Green Lanterns that had attended the Guardian's unveiling of new and improved power rings. Saarek appeared to be on a friendly basis with Hal Jordan and discussed the changes to the Corps that both Lanterns had seen over the years. Saarek later fought in the battle to defend Oa from invasion by a hostile alien race lead by Ffa'rzz, the Mocker. Following the destruction of the Corps by Parallax, Saarek returned home and has worked diligently to hone his natural telepathic talents. He aspires to become a powerful enough telepath to commune directly with the Guardians. It has been widely reported that Saarek claims to be skilled enough telepathically to speak with the dead. This statement has been met with skepticism by the majority of the Corps. Green Lantern Corps Saarek returned to Oa claiming that he was invited by the dead Lanterns of the Crypts of Oa. He was found meditating among the emerald monuments of the fallen Lanterns by the crypt keeper Morro. When asked what he was doing, Saarek informed his fellow Lantern that he was speaking to the dead. "The dead were cold" he stated, and more disturbingly, they were scared over the coming future. Shortly thereafter, Kilowog, Kyle Rayner and the rookies they were horrified when their training exercises were interrupted by a grusome rain of eyeballs from the sky. The Lanterns were confused as to who committed this disgusting act, and more importantly, who were the unfortunate victims. An investigation quickly determined that the eyes were ripped from the bodies of various corpsmen's family members. Someone was targeting the loved ones of Lanterns across the universe; someone bold enough to send this macabre message to the Corps. Fortunately, Saarek remained in the vicinity and offered his unique services in hopes of identifying the killer. His power to speak to the dead allowed Saarek to draw out the last image seen by one of the eyes. The eye belonged to the mother of a new recruit Zevonn Parrzx, and in a cruel twist of fate, he was present on the training field when his mothers remains were identified. Saarek drew out the image of the killer from Zevonn's mother's eye and used his ring to project the image of a bug eyed alien of unknown origin. The face of the killer had been revealed thanks to the mysterious Lantern's unusual gift. Later, Saarek and the Honor Guard gathered the remains and transferred them to a holding tank. It was theorized that the mysterious Lantern could use his powers to identify the killer, or killers, of all of the victims as he had done earlier on the training field. The sheer volume of eyes rained upon the Corps made it likely that more than one killer was involved in this hideous attack. Saarek was happy to aid in bringing these killers to justice but acknowledged that many Lanterns, including Salaak, doubted his claims that he could speak to the dead. Guy Gardner thought the endless chattering of the dead would be a curse to someone with Sarrek’s unique abilities but when questioned by Kilowog, Saarek informed the Lanterns that he had this ability since birth, and had considered it a blessing. Seeking to prove his claims, Saarek immersed himself into the tank with dozens of eyeballs. Using both his power ring and his natural ability, the eyes completely covered Saarek’s body. With a scream multiple images of the same alien face burst forth from each of the victims eyes. Saarek had identified the killer once more. The same face had committed all of these murders and would no doubt strike again. A plan was formed to search the sectors of recent recruits. Saarek joined Rayner, Gardner and Kilowog in their hunt. Shortly after, a Sinestro Corps Soldier was located by as she was preparing to kill the parents of a new Lantern recruit. Rather than face interrogation, the Sinestro Soldier blew off her own head. believed the case closed, when he was contacted by Kilowog who had located and apprehended an identical killer in another sector. The Lanterns all rendezvoused with Kilowog and confirmed that his prisoner was identical to the suicidal killer captured by . The Corps was left with a dilemma as they had no way of knowing how many of these killers remained. With Kilowog’s prisoner refusing to talk, was preparing to discuss how far the Corps would go to ensure that these killings were stopped. This dilemma was prevented when Saarek interjected a suggestion. He asked Guy to drop his shield which contained the remains of the dead killer and approached the lifeless body. Kilowog’s prisoner bristled over this “invasion” of his sister, and Saarek revealed a more hardened side by quickly silencing the killer with a debilitating blast of his ring. Saarek “read” the dead villain, revealing the word “quintet”. Five siblings, all Sinestro Corps Soldiers and all heartless killers, had formulated a plan to spread fear amongst the Corps ranks by killing the families of new recruits. Three killers remained, and with the knowledge Saarek gained from reading the dead, they were quickly apprehended by the Lanterns. The Orders from Scar Saarek parted ways with the thanks for his fellow Lanterns. Although he was reportedly returning to his sector Saarek had additional business to conduct on Oa. He was calling into a private meeting by the Guardian known as Scar. As she had done before with the Lantern Ash, the cryptic Guardian tasked Saarek with a mission that was to remain secret from all other Lanterns and Guardians. Scar ordered Saarek to use his abilities to communicate with the corpse of the Anti-Monitor. Once again, Scar’s agenda reveals a perilous connection with the Anti-Monitor and the Black Lanterns. This led to Saarek's death and he was later reavealed as a black lantern. Powers and Abilities Powers * Indomitable Will: Saarek possesses an indomitable strength of will, which makes him an asset to the Green Lantern Corps. * Necromancy: Possibly a natural ability of his people, Saarek possesses the ability to telepathically commune with the dead. He can also perceive visual impressions of an individual's identity and personality through physical contact with the descendent. Abilities *Coming Soon Strength *Coming Soon Weakness *If Saarek overextends his necromantic abilities, he risks rupturing a vessel in his head, causing him to bleed. Equipment Former Equipment *Black Lantern Power Battery *Green Lantern Power Battery Weapons Former Weapons *Black Lantern Power Ring *Green Lantern Power Ring Notes *Coming Soon Trivia *Saarek is an obvious homage to the "Star Trek" character Mr. Spock; the two characters sharing similar appearances, personalities, Saarek's name is very close to Spock's father's name (Sarek), and both come from a home planet named Vulcan. Saarek even flashed Jordan the, “Live-long-and-prosper,” during his *very* first appearance: Green Lantern Vol. 2 #90 & #97. See also *Saarek/Gallery Links *http://dc.wikia.com/wiki/Saarek_%28New_Earth%29 *http://www.comicvine.com/saarek/29-49704/ Category:Former Green Lantern Corps Members Category:Former Black Lantern Corps Members